The Reason
by Reihoshi-ko
Summary: Devil May Cry 5, set very early on. Before Kat and Dante go to the Virility plant. Dante finds out why Kat has short hair. [One-shot]


**AN: This is a really short one shot for DmC 5. This is my first Devil May Cry fanfiction as I've just completed the game and I'm now obsessed. I had this idea and I just needed to get it down, so it may not be any good. Either way, thank you to everyone who reads this.**

The Reason

Kat stood in the middle of the trashed room, sighing. Demons always made such a mess, but this place was her home. She felt safe here until those bastards had come charging through and ruined it all and now she was left feeling fragile and vulnerable all over again. Vergil and Dante stood at her door, speaking in hushed tones as she surveyed the damage. Dante had come to get her for their next mission when they'd been attacked and Dante had been dragged into Limbo yet again. They were all used to this sort of thing but did it have to happen in her home? She heard footsteps and glanced over her shoulder at the door, seeing Vergil leaving. Dante made his way over to her wearing a scowl. "He's impossible sometimes. We're to go on the mission just now, but he can go fuck himself. I'll help you sort this place out then we'll go."

Kat smiled at him, laughing a little. "You're both impossible sometimes." She said fondly, turning back to face the room. She loved both of the twins. Vergil had saved her, he showed her that things could be better, that she could be better. She wasn't sure when she'd become so fond of Dante though. They'd only been working together for a short time, but he was such an important part of her life now, and she was surprised to discover how deeply she trusted him. She watched him move over to the set of drawers that had been knocked over and right it. "Thank you, Dante." She mumbled, moving to correct the coffee table. The broken glass crunched under her feet and she sighed inwardly, knowing that she didn't have the money to afford another coffee table.

"Hey, why did you cut your hair?" The question took her by surprise and she glanced at him with a frown, seeing that he was holding something in his hand that clearly belonged in one of the drawers that lay on the floor at his feet. She moved to him, plucking the photo from her hand. It was a couple of years old and she'd been out with her foster father who had taken this photo of her at a pier. She glared at it, that day was burned into her memory and she had to frequently try to suppress it. She tore the photo in two and dropped the pieces to the floor before turning her back to them.

Dante grabbed her wrist to stop her from moving away. "Kat? Are you okay? What was that about?" He asked her, moving in front of her, causing her to look up and meet his eyes. His brow was ever so slightly furrowed in confusion and there was a hint of concern in his voice. None of his usual cocky, teasing tone was to be heard. She dropped her gaze and sighed, pulling her hood up. It still made her feel insecure and her hood helped to ease that insecurity somehow. "This is connected to your foster father, isn't it?" He asked her after a long silence. She just nodded. She didn't want to talk about it but to appease his obvious curiosity she met his gaze again.

"He used my long hair as an excuse for what he was doing to me one night." She told him in way of an explanation, moving to finishing sorting the room and after a short moment she heard Dante do the same, explaining what had happened quietly as they both fixed the room again.

It had been just under a year since she'd cut her hair, just before Vergil had found her. Her foster father had came to her one night, wrecked from a night of drinking and had been a lot more forceful and violent than he usually was with her. She'd tried to fight back or run but he was much stronger than her, or any human. He'd grabbed a fistful of her long hair stopping her, his lips at her ear telling how she was so beautiful with her long dark hair. He told her that she'd never be beautiful again if he could help it. She had retreated into limbo then, and that was the night that Vergil had discovered her in that forsaken place. When she returned to reality her step father was gone, and she'd stumbled painfully to the bathroom. She wiped the tears from her face and ignored the blood on her skin as she grabbed scissors and slipped into the shower. As she let the hot water soothe her skin, she cut her hair off. She'd killed him not long after that and then vanished with Vergil. She since loved her short hair. It was a reminder that she could be strong, and that she could fight back.

* * *

Kat stood up, putting the spray can away and watching as Dante returned from Limbo for a second time that day. He offered her a smirk and rolled his shoulders. She admired how calm Dante seemed throughout everything, although it was a cockiness that would surely get him killed one day. She smiled in return to him, pulling away as he playfully ruffled her short hair. She slapped his hand away and shot him a glare as he laughed, pulling her hood up.

"Relax Kat. I think you're hotter with shorter hair anyway." He muttered teasingly as he walked past her. She fell into step with him and slapped his shoulder, which only caused him to laugh more.

"You're such a jackass, Dante." She muttered, though there was no spite to her words and Dante knew that. He just laughed at her, gave her a playful push and then winked at her, grinning at the redness that rushed to her cheeks.

"Come on, let's not keep Vergil waiting. I'd quite like a break tonight." Dante said, continuing down the street. Kat walked with him, shaking her head.

"You're being hunted by every demon there is and are in the middle of trying to win freedom for the human race and you want a night off?" She asked incredulously.

"Of course. Do you have any idea how exhausting all of that is?" Dante said, grinning when the human girl at his side laughed. He liked to see her happy like that, and despite all of the chaos that the world was in, he knew that being by her side throughout it was the best thing in the world.


End file.
